U.S. stock index futures are higher today ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen’s comments on the economy and Britain’s vote on its European Union membership on Thursday.

Yellen is expected to speak on the central bank’s monetary policy before the Senate Banking Committee at 10:00 a.m. ET in Washington. She will also attend a meeting at 4:30 p.m. ET with other Fed officials. The central bank left interest rates unchanged last week and sounded caution after surprisingly weak monthly hiring data put the economy’s recovery to question.

Wall Street, which rallied at the open on Monday, closed higher as investors breathed a sigh of relief as opinion polls showed fewer chances of Britain leaving the European Union. Britain is scheduled to vote on Thursday, an event that has roiled the markets in the past week as investors fret over its consequences, including the possibility of the EU falling apart if the country votes to leave.

Investors have erred on the side of caution in the past week, sticking to safe-haven assets such as gold and the yen. Gold fell for the second day and the dollar remained weak as risk appetite increased.

Real estate investment trust Dream Office REIT said it would sell a 50 per cent interest in Scotia Plaza, Canada’s second tallest office building, to KingSett Capital and AIMCo.